My Immortal
by xiiao
Summary: Meiling is the most dangerous vampire. Sakura's the most dangerous hunter. After Sakura's death another hunter comes into the picture.. More threatening to the vampire race, and specifically Meiling, than ever before. [ AU/OOC ]
1. The Taste of Life

My Immortal  
By: Xiao  
  
` Isn't this weird? I thought this whole plot up when I was listening to Haunted by Evanescence, and yet it's called My Immortal, which is another song by Evanescence. That's just a bit awkward.  
  
Anyway, this is a total OOC, AU story. I like to say this may be MeiLi, but it won't be S+S.. Maybe just in the beginning. Who knows. I hope you enjoy, I'm hoping this is dark and some what suspenseful when it gets toward the good stuff. The rating may also change. We'll see.   
  
And I hope this is nothing like anything written by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. Sorry if it is, and don't sue. Seriously.`  
  
---  
Chapter I : The Taste of Life  
---  
  
Black boots tapped against the alley way, just gently scattering the bits of water as it came in contact. The night was the usual, just a humid warm one, so nice people rarely went with long sleeves or a coat. As for the night, she was wearing a black short sleeved shirt, with a short black skirt, her boots pulled slightly below the knees. Raven tresses dropped to mid-back, pulled into a loose pony tail, tied with the familiar red ribbon that lasted until the lower back.  
  
She was due to meet up with a fellow friend at the Starbucks down the road, already a few minutes late, as she always was. She was known for taking her time, usually walking the alleys to get to her destination, just because the best prey was there, and it didn't cause much of a chaos. Not that she couldn't handle a group, of course she could, but when she was supposed to be somewhere else, and wanting to catch someone in the trip, she preferred the loner who took the alleys. It was just simpler and took less time.  
  
And of course, there usually was a loner. A small smile passed the girls blackened lips as she noticed the guy ahead of her. Oh, this would be simple, she knew it already. A teenager, no older than seventeen, walking with his cell phone pressed to his ear and smoking a cigarette. She took her time following in silence until she was just a few feet behind him and muttered a, "hello there, you really shouldn't be wandering these alleys alone…" just loud enough until he turned. She swiped her foot behind him and knocked him over, and before he could even respond, she had him pinned on the ground and lips pressed against his neck. A moment later he went limp, his cell phone tossed over at the side.  
  
"It really isn't safe." She said as she got up and wiped her mouth with her hand and grinned, savoring that thick taste wash down her throat. Oh, yes, that lovely taste of life that only her kind could understand and appreciate.  
  
---  
  
"Hey." She heard as she opened the door to the Starbucks. Tomoyo sat in the corner in one of those couches. Meiling smiled as she went over to her friend and took a seat in the one next to her, noticing that she was checking her watch, a drink pressed in her hand. "Late. What's the deal with you? Should I just say we need to get here at a certain time, and then I'll just come thirty minutes later?"  
  
Meiling shrugged as she took her water bottle out of her purse and unscrewed the cap, before taking a sip and relaxing herself against the maroon cushions. Tomoyo eyed her carefully. "Did you get someone on the way?" Water always came after blood, she knew that. It was enough to satisfy her stomach so it wouldn't overturn the blood.  
  
"Yeah." She shrugged as she thought of it. "Someone stupid enough to roam the alleys without even paying attention to anything else except who was on his cell phone. Actually, it was kind of pathetic, I had him on the ground before he could even scream or fight back."  
  
Tomoyo took a sip of her own drink as she brushed he dark lavender hair from her face. "Well, that's good, at least you didn't this crowd after, following that guy's damned scream for help." Tomoyo was one of the less experienced vampires, always in search for the easiest victims. Occasionally she got into the big ones, where people came running when the person screamed, but she could handle it, and at least she was quick enough to get away from the scene.  
  
Meiling, on the other hand, was well known and was an expert at the whole vampire ordeal. Considered one of the best vampires out of everyone of them, the ones alive, and the ones dead. Known by people that she had never even heard of. And of course, she was quite famous amongst the hunters, especially because of the fact that she had already killed so many of them. And it was amusing to her because they were considered some of the best hunters, killing some of her closest friends, and yet she finished them off the night they stood in front of her.  
  
"You get a chaotic one tonight?"  
  
"Yeah." She sighed, recalling the previous experience. Meiling gave her a slight grin as she took another sip of her water and eyed each customer walking in and out of the café.  
  
"Well, practice makes perfect."  
  
"Fuck you, I hate the chaos."  
  
"You're still going to get it, and you know it. Just handle it, it's not that hard."  
  
"Easy for you to say," Tomoyo mumbled in return. She scooted back against the cushions and pulled her legs up, wrapped her arm around her legs and setting her chin on her knees. "You've been doing this for basically your whole life, I'm so new to this." She sighed. Tomoyo was one of the girls who was recently brought into their little group. She had obviously fought back against one of the vampires against her, somehow got them to bleed, and then somehow got that blood in her system. Ever since that night a few years or so back, Meiling had taken the girl under her wing and began to teach her the basics.   
  
Meiling, on the other hand, had no idea how she came into this whole thing, she had been a vampire for as long as she could remember. And she could remember back for at least a thousand years, and then the rest was a blur. Yes. Cue the awkward stare, she was about a thousand and six hundred and nine years, but she looked like she was about eighteen of nineteen.  
  
Yes, she was immortal. Yes, Tomoyo was immortal. That's just how it worked, a vampire would live forever unless killed by a hunter. Hunters where the bastards who carried some hell of dagger, supposedly it had a center of holy water, which isn't exactly enough to kill a vampire if they're just normally stabbed, but if they get it deep into a main blood vessel or the heart, you could die pretty slowly and painfully. Other than that, wounds from a hunter's dagger healed slowly if it was shallow, and normal wounds caused from punches or kicks, or anything like that, usually healed up in a few hours.  
  
"So, what did you have planned tonight?" Meiling finally asked, getting bored with the whole situation. She watched at her friend took another glance at her watch, and then stood up.  
  
"The meetings in thirty minutes. We should get going." Meiling nodded and stood up before pressing the closed bottle of water back in her purse and following Tomoyo out the front door, she dumping the rest of her drink in the trash can. Meiling followed her to the girl's ebony black corvette and sighed as she took her seat.  
  
"Why the hell do you have to drive everywhere?" She mumbled as Tomoyo came in on the other side, and pressed her keys into the ignition. "Damn, and then you have to stop and get out and make it look so suspicious if you find some good prey."  
  
"Screw you, I like my car." She backed out of the parking place and then sped off down the road, turning on her radio and cranking up the volume as Meiling sighed and leaned back. It took only fifteen minutes until Tomoyo pulled up at one of the houses and turned off the engine.  
  
The two got out and made their way to the door, not even bothering to knock or ring the doorbell. It didn't matter, anyway, considering the house looked so dead that only the people who knew who actually lived her, actually came here. There was, of course, the occasional pre-teens in search of a cheap thrill and entered. Of course, the guy took them up as the offering, and those pre-teens were never seen until a few days later, where they were deathly pale and had no idea why they in the front yard of that house.  
  
As expected, they found their usual group scattered amongst the living room. The fire place was ablaze and flames dancing carelessly and with ease. They all chatted, and Meiling snuck up behind one of them and was about to press the tip of her fangs against his neck just to see if she could actually succeed this time, except for he already knew she was there. "Come on, Meiling, really."  
  
She sighed and took her seat next to him. It was really annoying that he had such good senses and always knew that she was there, but after all, he had been a vampire for about the same amount of time, and was pretty good as well. She looked around, wondering exactly who had been killed off this time. It was usually the only reason they ever had meetings, but everyone was there. Herself, Tomoyo, Eriol, Nakuru, and Xiulang. They had actually started off with seven people, but three were killed and then Tomoyo came into the picture, and so now they had their usual five.  
  
Meiling laced her fingers with Xiulang's and leaned in to whisper with him. "You're really no fun at all." He chuckled lightly and smiled at the girl. Xiulang was the only other vampire who was around the same placement as Meiling was, ranked at the top, known by tons and wanted by tons of the hunters.  
  
"Okay! Everyone shut up!" Eriol said as he stood. He was the guy who had lost to Tomoyo, and he was supposed to have been looking after her, teaching her what she needed to know, but he generally avoided her, no doubt embarrassed by the fact that this previous mortal had basically beaten him. "I've got some news here." Everyone eyed him as if it was a matter of life and death. "Meiling was on time!"  
  
"OH, FUCK YOU!" She hissed. Everyone else laughed and Eriol sat down as Xiulang took the place of him. He stood and mumbled a, "shut the hell up, we've got some real news." and waited until everyone calmed down and then began on the latest news of Hong Kong, about the amount of vampires and hunters killed. There were a few laughs as he announced the number of hunters killed, which was higher than usual.  
  
"Anyway. We've got some news from Japan." Meiling frowned. That's where the real hunters lived their lives, killing off their kind. Where the most dangerous resided, in a small town outside of Tokyo. Whenever Japan was mentioned, it almost always had to do with Tomoeda. Xiulang looked down at Meiling before back at the rest of the group in front of him. "Another one hundred and sixty two killings from the infamous Sakura Kinomoto and Xiao-Lang Li. The number of kills from the vampires in Tomoeda still sits at," everyone stared at him in anticipation. "ninety three."  
  
Oh, damn, what an embarrassment.  
  
"Anyone we knew?" Nakuru asked. She was big on who died, and if she knew them or if they were in higher rankings. She was a usually bubbly vampire, always playing with the prey before actually doing anything, flirting with them and getting them to buy her drinks a such. Though, when she knew of the deaths, she took everything else seriously for at least a week and then went back to what she was best known for.  
  
"No." He said back, calmly.  
  
Meiling sighed again and took a side glance to Tomoyo, who was sitting next to Nakuru. Xiulang continued, without even looking at everyone to see if they were paying attention or not. "Told from the other clans, they were some of their top vampires, though."  
  
Sakura Kinomoto and Xiao-Lang Li were the most dangerous hunters ever known. When their clan presided in Hong Kong, three from their group had been killed. Meiling had never actually encountered any of them, but she had always wanted to, always liking the idea of having the challenge placed at her. They were the best, and she was considered the best as well. And anyway, she wanted to be known for the final killing of the best.  
  
"There have been a lot of requests regarding us," Xiulang continued. "That we should be taken to Tomoeda, and plot and full fill their deaths. A lot of shit on how we're the best there is--"  
  
"Which we are." Meiling added, a confident smile passing her lips.  
  
"That we can get rid of them."  
  
There was silence in the room as each person considered this. Xiulang sat down and waited for another person to take the floor, to state their opinion on this whole situation of being sent down to Tomoeda to attempt to kill the most dangerous hunters on the whole fucking world. Tomoyo shifted uneasily in her seat, being new to this group, and being new to the whole vampire ordeal, she was no doubt nervous. "You all may be great at this, but I'm not. Do we have to risk the whole group in a goddamned suicide mission?"  
  
"It's not a goddamn suicide mission, Tomoyo." Meiling said, back, calmly.  
  
"And we don't have to send everyone, though I think the best of this group should. After all, these bastards are the best hunters, and nothing is going to beat them except the best vampires." Eriol said, finally, eyeing Xiulang and Meiling silently.  
  
"Agreed." Nakuru said. "The rest of us should be able to maintain the hunters in Hong Kong, while the others are off in Tomoeda."  
  
"Any votes on who?" Xiulang said. Everything was a matter of votes for some reason. It had just been how their group had worked. The group with the most would overrule and win. Anything usually involving the best vampires, people would usually vote Meiling and Xiulang. Anything involving the smartest would usually have Eriol as the top choice, same with anything that had to do with strategy. Tomoyo was rarely voted for, as was Nakuru.  
  
And of course, Xiulang and Meiling won this time, getting 100% support from everyone else.  
  
"Alright. Then we'll meet up in a few days and get the plan started." Xiulang stood, and then everyone else did and began to leave and such, except for Eriol, considering this was his house and all. Tomoyo went to her car after asking Meiling if she wanted a ride home, and then left, followed by Nakuru and then Xiulang and Meiling leaving last.  
  
"Being sent after the best." Meiling mumbled as she looked down, and made their way to his car. For some reason, she was the only one in five that preferred to walk home, and everyone else had some nice car and preferred to drive everywhere. She hated the idea that Xiulang even drove instead of walking, but she had to put up with it. 


	2. Defenses

My Immortal  
By: Xiao  
  
` I was hoping I could make Sakura just a bit different. -grin.- `  
  
-- Chapter Two: Defenses --  
"Have you two decided when?" Tomoyo asked, her voice somewhat dead over the phone. Meiling had pressed herself on the couch, her legs crisscrossed in front of her, her other hand placed in her lap. It was about nine o'clock and it had already been a few days since their group's last meeting.  
  
She took a glance at Xiulang, who was sitting on the arm of her couch, flipping through TV channels with a bored expression, not even staying on one channel for more than a few seconds. "Yeah, we have."  
  
"Really? Should we get another meeting up sometime before you guys leave?"  
  
"No, we don't need to." She said back, calmly. "And anyway, we're leaving tomorrow night."  
  
"Damn. You aren't going to cause any chaos at the airport, right?"  
  
Meiling smiled somewhat dangerously and took another look at Xiulang. "Chaos? No, of course not, Tomoyo. Where ever do you get that idea?" Her voice was so cynical it was somewhat confusing. Tomoyo sighed deeply on the other line, and grunted, mumbling about how this was going to cause so much hell tomorrow night, and then hung up. She pressed the power button and then set it down on the table before standing up and walking over to Xiulang, snatching the remote from him.  
  
"Stop flipping through channels, it's annoying." She said, and then handed it back to him before going to the stairs and up to her room, changing her outfit for the night. Xiulang mumbled something as she did so, and just continued to flip through each one. "I'm going to go out." She called back down from her room. "You want to come with?"  
  
"I'll meet up with you. Where you going?"  
  
"The alleys, then to Tomoyo's house. Want us to wait for you?"  
  
"Training?"  
  
"Yes." She said as she came down the stairs and snatched her purse off of the railing before slinging it onto her shoulder. Xiulang turned off the television and headed to the kitchen, where he left his car keys.  
  
"Yeah, wait up for me." Meiling nodded and took her on set of keys out of her pocket and headed to the front door. She exited, waited for Xiulang to come, and then locked up for the night.  
  
He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before slipping into his car and then driving off in the opposite direction, to where Eriol's house was. She watched as he drove off before making her way down the street and to more of the downtown area, where all the alleys were.  
  
---  
  
She gave a sharp knock on the door and then Tomoyo appeared at the door. She let her in and noticed that she was sipping from her usual water bottle. She slipped it back in her purse before she took a seat and looked at the clock on the wall, wondering how long it would take Xiulang to meet up with them. "So, what are we doing tonight?" Tomoyo asked, finally.  
  
"Hunters." She said, the light of Xiulang's headlights flooded the driveway. "And if you don't mind, Xiulang is going to be helping out tonight. We're going to go down to the alley ways and see if we can find a few decent hunters."  
  
"Damn it." Tomoyo said. Once again, the hunters were also a weak point of hers. She was good with getting away, and getting control of the silent prey, but anyone loud and anyone who could fight back was always a problem.  
  
"Don't act so negative, you're lucky we're doing this during the night. If I was in a bad mood, I could have made you do this in the afternoon, which, as you know, let's their auras harder to notice." Tomoyo nodded; at least she was lucky enough to do this lesson during the night. For vampires, their auras were more noticeable during the day, and more discrete during the night. For the hunters, it was the same, except their auras were more discrete in the day.  
  
The two girls exited and made their way to Xiulang's car, Tomoyo and herself taking a seat in the back as Meiling dug around in her purse. "Where to?"  
  
"Alleys."  
  
"What for?"  
  
"Going to see if we can find some hunters." She looked up in the rearview mirror and saw that Xiulang was smiling. She shook her head, wondering why she was letting him join on this training bit. She knew that he loved to go after the hunters, that most of them were just a cheap thrill if you were actually looking for one.  
  
She grinned and pulled out a small dagger placed in a leather holder, and pulled it out, handling it with extreme caution. Tomoyo just stopped moving and stared and then Xiulang slammed on the brakes in the middle of the road, cars swirling around him so not to crash. The sudden jerk caused her to stab the back of the seat in front of her. Lucky for them, it was the passenger's seat, and no one was sitting there. "Why the fuck are you carrying one of those around!?"  
  
"Goddamnit, Xiulang!" She screamed pulling it out of the cushion and putting it back in the leather holder. "Stop slamming on the fucking breaks before I accidentally stab someone! I mean, what the hell is your problem!? Do you think I'm going to STAB you just because I have the fucking dagger?!"  
  
"My problem?!" He shot back. Tomoyo just blinked and stared at the two, wondering how in hell they could be considered a couple, since they usually yelled at each other. "You're a fucking vampire, why the hell do you have a hunter's dagger?!"  
  
"YOU GUYS SHUT THE HELL UP!" Tomoyo finally said, kicking the back of his chair to tell him to take his foot off the break. Meiling shook her head as she gave Xiulang a slight glare and then relaxed back in her seat. A moment later and he took his foot off the brake and continued on their way to the alleys.  
  
A few minutes of silence passed until finally Xiulang stopped and took his keys out. Meiling sighed and got out and down to the middle of the alley, waiting for the other two to follow her. Once they all stood around her, she pulled the dagger out of its case, in exchange winning a glare from Xiulang. "Now, if you give me a chance to explain."  
  
"You know this is really smart, Mei." He said, his voice full of ringing with a sarcastic tone. Meiling glared back and Tomoyo shoved him lightly, and waved for Meiling to continue on.  
  
"Anyway." She said as she pulled it out of its case, silver glinting with the streetlights with a deadly tinge. She stuffed the small leather case in her back pocket and then held the dagger directly in front of her face, the tip pointing upwards. "Now, this is, obviously, a hunter's dagger. I stole it from a hunter when I killed them." She smirked. "And this is what a hunter's dagger does." She pulled it down and pressed the tip firmly against her index finger. Part of her skin seemed to sizzle and then blood pooled together and then spilt over.  
  
"What the hell?" Xiulang muttered.  
  
"Now, see, these type of daggers are supposedly have a holy water center, that's why it's so deadly to us. Of course, it doesn't kill us with just a small cut like this. But, let's say it's at the chest." She pushed the dagger hard at Xiulang and came to a dead stop only an inch from his chest. He didn't even wince or move at all. "Now, lets say they got a dead hit right at the heart. Xiulang, our lovely vampire, would die in a matter of seconds." She pulled it away and took its leather case out before placing it back in. She went to his car and tossed it in the back seat before coming back. "The point is it's deadly." She grinned.  
  
"Now, if you want, we can get some basic fighting in before we go off in search of a real hunter. You want to?" She asked. Actually, Tomoyo was pretty decent at fighting, but she wasn't exactly an expert. She gave a slight nod, and Meiling took a glance at Xiulang. "Do you want to fight with her, or would you rather me?"  
  
"I'll do it." He said, and went in front of her. It was a good thing that everyone was wearing somewhat moveable clothes instead of the usual skirts and such. Tomoyo adorned in a pair of dark blue jean pants with a black short-sleeved shirt. Xiulang with the same, except his pants were black. Meiling, of course, was all black with her red ribbon in her hair (yes, it was a trademark thing). "Don't worry, Daidouji, I'll go easy on you."  
  
Meiling leaned against the wall and chuckled lightly as she prepared to watch her best friend and boyfriend go through a fighting session. There was a moment as they both prepared and got into their stances before their was a charge and kicks began to fly, sometimes being caught and hits bring through. Tomoyo began with a swift kick to the shin, only for Xiulang to jump and send another hit at her, which she caught and aimed another kick at his stomach, which he blocked swiftly. The same thing going on for a few minutes until Xiulang got hold of her leg and she was beginning to stumble.  
  
The next moment he had a Meiling's arm held tightly around his neck with one of his arms in her grasp. Tomoyo pulled free, and then Meiling had her lips against his neck as if to bite him, but only the tips of her fangs pressed against the skin. Another bite from a vampire to a vampire was, of course, harmless, but it could cause some extreme pain if they got certain points, Meiling had the right spot, as usual. A moment later, she pressed, not enough to puncture skin, but enough to make it uncomfortable, and then she let go. "Come on, Xiu, that was much to easy."  
  
Just then there was another person at the edge of the alley.  
  
---  
  
"So," she said as she slipped the dagger neatly back into it's case and setting it on her nightstand. "I got another one this evening." She turned and looked at her friend, sitting on her bed with a smirk on her face. Rika nodded lightly as she took a glance at the bit of blood spill on Sakura's jeans. "She had, sadly, a pathetic defense."  
  
"Doesn't matter." Rika replied, her voice soft. "I got some news, by the way, while you were out."  
  
"Oh? From who?"  
  
"Xiao-Lang. He seems to have some sort of connection with people in Hong Kong. He wanted me to tell you that supposedly Meiling Li and Xiulang Lei are to be arriving in Tomoeda sometime tomorrow. Said that they're considered some of the best vampires, and their aimed directly at you and himself." She watched her friend's movements, Sakura running a hand through her chestnut hair and walking to the window, where she looked down at the street. Everything sat still and calm, the streetlight's shimmer flickering ever so lightly. She turned back to her, emerald gleams residing in her orbs, with a smirk on her face.  
  
"Mess with the best and you'll die like the rest." This caused a nod from Rika, and of course a smirk. "There's tons of people who claimed to be the best vampires, and look, they're dead, aren't they; with just an impetration of a blade. How utterly amusing that they think themselves of any different than the ones that died because of Xiao-Lang or me."  
  
Rika rolled her eyes lightly with a chuckle escaping between her lips. "You act like you're the best there ever is and ever will be in the hunters race."  
  
Sakura smirked, as she went to the nightstand and took her dagger out of it's case and watched her reflection stare back at her in the blade's perfected silver. "That's because I am, Rika."  
  
---  
  
"Shit." Tomoyo muttered under her breath as she saw that figure making their way toward them. Of course she knew that it was a hunter, its aura was so strong and the way it was gazing at them was a dead give away. Her eyes tore from him and to Meiling's wondering why one hunter would take on three vampires, two of them being, basically, the best out of every one of them.  
  
"Oh, this is wonderful." Meiling said as she took a few steps toward Tomoyo. Her voice was low, deadly, dangerous tone. "We can see what you can do now, and then improve. Go right ahead, Tomoyo, please get rid of this bastard and we'll see what we can do after that." She gave her friend a gentle push. Tomoyo shook her head and made her way over to him, as Xiulang came back to meet Meiling.  
  
"You really think we should let her handle this one? He's obviously somewhat good if he's not even nervous about three of us." He took a side-glance at her, as Meiling grinned, watching Tomoyo begin a pretty damn good fight.  
  
"She'll be fine, Xiulang." She assured him. "Some of these hunters are just on ego trips and think they can handle every one of us that they are dealt." The hunter had thrown a swift stab, in which Tomoyo jerked to the side and grabbed his wrist, sending a kick to the back of his right shin, which hit hard at its destination. He stumbled, aimlessly trying to get about stab at her and missed by at least half a foot. She then let his wrist go and he fell flat on the pavement. The next thing he knew, she had her foot standing on the wrist that had his dagger. He glared up at her, grabbing her ankle with his free hand.  
  
"Now, now, you two, do place nicely." Meiling chuckled. Usually she was really serious when training Tomoyo, but at the moment, she knew that she had the advantage and if she just made the correct move, she could win this easily.  
  
Tomoyo smirked down at his attempt to knock her over, and with a swift move of her leg, she kicked him hard in the chin, and then she felt his wrist stop being so tense, and his fingers detached from his dagger. She bent down and picked up the dagger, carefully, and then threw it down at the chest of her victim. Blood swelled and then spilled over against his shirt.  
  
"Nicely done." Xiulang commented as him and Meiling made their way over to Tomoyo, who stood, smiling wickedly at the victim beneath her. "I especially liked the kick to the chin." Meiling nodded in agreement to his statement.  
  
"I told you he would be a self centered bastard who thinks he can take on anyone who is dealt." She said as she eyed Xiulang beside her. Tomoyo turned and looked at the two behind her, with a smile on her face.  
  
The three made their way back to Xiulang's car as Meiling began to comment on how she was getting much better, that now all she needed was a little more practice on a little more talented hunters, and then some strategy on handling bigger groups and then she'd be a pretty damn good vampire. 


	3. Tomoeda

My Immortal  
  
By: Xiao  
  
` I'm sorry for not updating in a long time, even though I have the whole idea plotted out in my mind. But who cares, better late than never, right? So, here I am, drinking some coffee with 4 spoon fills of sugar with some French vanilla, while sitting in the dark of my parent's room with the TV tuned to some old movie, with my bathing suit top with purple painted finger nails, and listening to the lovely singer, Michael Buble. Now, you get to see how my mind works in these conditions. Enjoy the chapter. `  
  
--  
  
Chapter Three: Tomoeda  
  
--  
  
"Oh, this is joyous." Sakura said, her legs crisscrossed in front of her. Her pale hands were holding a telephone that was pressed against her ear. She was dressed casually, a pair of dark blue jeans with a pink t-shirt. Her hair was put into two pigtail buns, tied with pink ribbon. A small smirk crossed her lips as she took a glance out the window near her bed, where the crescent moon was glistening with its pure innocence. "Do you think we should meet up with them?"  
  
"No." The voice replied back, calm and collected. "You can't take these ones with a carefree non-organized plan. Even if they consider themselves the best, everyone else did, too, but you have to take them seriously or who knows what could happen. Maybe they are, anyway."  
  
"I know that." She said as she stood and took the phone with her and went to the window, leaning out slightly and watching everything with her emerald eyes. "But at least can't we go out now? Play amongst the stars," She paused. "Or in this case-"  
  
"Sakura."  
  
"Xiao Lang?"  
  
"No, they're arriving tonight. Give it a rest for the night." His voice was slightly forceful, so no questions to be asked in return. She sighed, annoyed. Sakura hated it when he was like this, being protective of her even though she knew that she could take down anyone that stood in her way, but yet she wasn't going to argue because he was just as stubborn and argumentive as she was. "Got me?"  
  
She mumbled a yes. "All right. I'll meet up with you tomorrow morning. Sleep tight." With that the phone went dead, and Sakura set the phone back on the receiver before taking a seat on her bed, and pulling her CD player out from her night stand's drawer.  
  
This was going to be a long night of nothing, and in her opinion, it sucked.  
  
--  
  
"What fun." Meiling said as her eyes scanned the over crowded airport of Tomoeda, Japan. The pure auras of some people beaming lightly and then others were beaming heavily. Her and Xiulang had just gotten off the ride from Hong Kong, and the sun was already dipping into a pure whitened color, the rest of the sky beginning to hold the familiar bits of white glitter amongst the velvet canvas. "Welcome to a vampire's playground." She muttered quietly.  
  
Xiulang ignored her comment as he made his way to the terminal and then to the luggage pick up, where he got his bag and then Meiling got her own. "Where to?" He asked. She pulled a crumbled paper from her jean pocket and smoothed it out, her eyes scanning it quietly. The address was one for a hotel on the outskirts of Tomoeda, close to downtown Tokyo.  
  
--  
  
"Where are you going?" She asked as she saw him drop his things down and just head back for the door, which led to the hallway. She had just expected him to drop off into the other room and go to sleep since the long ride from the airport to the hotel, but she was wrong. And she didn't know why she didn't expect him to do what he was going to, since she was thinking the same thing. He turned and gave her one of his looks. "I'm going to go, too, then."  
  
"Yeah, sure." He said as he shut the door behind him. She followed behind him as they made their way down the hallway.  
  
"You want to make a bet for tonight?" She asked with a smirk on her face. This was one of the most fun things they did; was make some weird bets for the night. Xiulang stopped, smirking himself and looked at her with a competitive nod. "Let's ride some of the elevators. See who gets the most victims." They didn't usually do any prize for the winner unless they both agreed on it. Usually, just knowing they beat the other was enough.  
  
He nodded, as they came to one elevator and Meiling stopped in front of it. She nodded to him and waited until he was down the hallway at the opposite hallway. It was a good thing that the room service people wouldn't be running around each story of the hotel, so they wouldn't get caught. "Second story and above, all right?" She asked as she pressed the button in time with him. She looked at the clock down the hallway. "Be back at 1:30!" She stepped into the elevator where one person already stood. It was obvious they were going up another story or so, because they didn't get out. A moment later, Xiulang stepped into his own elevator.  
  
"Hey." She said. The person next to her seemed to be about twenty or so. He was a male and seemed quite tired from whatever it was he was doing. She flashed him a smile and pressed the 9th story button. "Where you from?"  
  
"Beijing, China." He replied back in a smooth Japanese tone.  
  
"Hong Kong for me." She replied back. "You seem tired. You just get in?" There was a nod from him as he glanced at the orange glowing buttons that were flashing when they came higher and higher in the hotel. "Hey, me too." She began to advance on him, pressing him back into a corner with her body. He shoved back from her, hard.  
  
"What the hell?" He said. Meiling chuckled darkly and shook her head lightly and made her way back toward him. At least he wasn't completely out of it. She snapped a punch right to his right cheek, and little blood present. He stumbled backward and then slipped down, already out.  
  
"We don't play that way." She said, calmly and bent down, pressing her lips to his neck and biting him sharply. As they came to the 9th story, she dragged him out and left him by the stairs as she made her way back to her elevator.  
  
--  
  
Meiling's methods were more of an advance and if they refuse, kick their ass type of thing. She was more into getting everything done quickly and risk the fact that they could be just as good of a fighter as her. Of course, if they were, it wasted a lot of time. Xiulang, on the other hand, acted like he wanted to know them and get their "trust" before he even tried anything. In other words, it was pretty much considered seduction. Of course, that strategy didn't always work, and if it didn't, he had other methods about the same of Meiling's.  
  
"So," he said as he leaned back against the railing inside the elevator. He had this way of looking quite innocent look. It hadn't even been a two minutes, and they were already in conversation. She was a pretty girl about his age, black hair with midnight blue eyes. "Are you single?"  
  
She took a side-glance at him, smiling almost playfully. "Yeah. We just broke up. What about you?"  
  
"I'm not." He said. Her smile vanished at that moment, and she began to get sort of uncomfortable. Well, it was true, he wasn't single, and he wasn't going to deny it. Not that him and Meiling could be classified as a couple just by the looks and how they acted. They were actually pretty hard on each other, always arguing and competing. Deep down she must liked him to some degree, though, because she always put up with him. And anyway, deep down he had some sort of feeling for her, too.   
  
"Not that it matters, no. She's back in Hong Kong. We just had this fight and she told me to fuck off, so here I am. Pathetic, I know. All the way to Japan." Well, in these competitions that they had, anything went. She knew his methods, anyway, how couldn't she? It didn't seem to bother her that much, because she knew that it was all an act.  
  
"Oh my God, I'm sorry!" She said, her voice soft. Xiulang couldn't believe how stupid some people could be, but since it would be easy prey, he decided to make it sound as bad as he could before they got to their spots in the hotel. "Was it bad? Are you going to go back?"  
  
"Yeah... Well... I don't know yet." He said shrugging.  
  
"Oh. I don't think you should if she just shoves you out like that!" She said. The door opened to her floor and she took another look at him, as if asking him if he wanted to her to stay or not. He smiled lightly as an invitation, and she decided to stay.  
  
He pressed another button, which led to another floor. "Maybe I can make it better?" she asked, her voice filled with a playful tone. He blinked, looked at her and smirked as she made her way over to his corner of the elevator. He leaned in, and tilted his head slightly so his breath was right against her neck.  
  
"I'm sure you can." He then kissed softly below her jaw a few times searching for the main artery. He could hear her mumble why did she want to give up someone like you, and then her voice dropped and she went limp as he bit her. "No idea." He smirked again, wiping his lip.  
  
---  
  
"Guess what, Xiao Lang?" Sakura said. She had met up with him the early morning down at one of the break feast houses and was sitting across from him in one of the booths, sipping an iced tea. He took a drink from his coffee and didn't even look at her. "I'm not staying home tonight, all right?"  
  
"Fine."  
  
"Don't try and protect me, I'm just as good of a hunter as you, for God's sake! You did that last time someone came from Hong Kong. And anyway, I want some action and now they're in Tomoeda. Can't you feel the auras?" She asked. "Wait, what?"  
  
"I said fine, Cherry Blossom." He said as he set his cup down and still kept his fingers entangled around the warm ceramic mug. "Last time was different, anyway. You know you did have pneumonia. It'd be a stupid idea to let you run around outside, and I bet you anyone else would agree." He looked around, his own caramel eyes scanning the small restaurant.  
  
"I had a cold, Xiao Lang."  
  
"Your father took you to the doctor and they diagnosed you with pneumonia." He replied back calmly. "But that's not the point. Really, if you want, we'll go out like usual and if we just happen to run into them, then, okay, you've got your action."  
  
"Okay." She said, waving a waiter over and asking for a refill of her iced tea. Once she had left, she began to run her index finger over the rim of cold water on the wooden table. "Why are you so serious about these two?"  
  
"Connections." The waiter had just come back and handed Sakura another glass of tea, a little lemon slice pressed against the edge of it. She tore open two packets of sugar and dumped it into the glass, stirring it with her spoon. She then looked up at him, no doubt, interested. "Well, Yukito and Touya are up there in Hong Kong. They've been trying to keep track on their little group."  
  
She groaned as she sipped her drink. "You mess with the best and then you'll die like the rest." She shook her head, trying to imagine how good these vampires could be. Out of every situation in her head, she saw herself or Xiao Lang killing them, either with no problem or with just the lightest struggles. And anyway, there was no one that really seemed to pose as a threat to them so far, so how could a vampire just suddenly appear that was so much higher in their fighting tactics and such? It just didn't seem possible in her eyes. After all, the two of them were smart and they could come up with anything that could help them beat them with just a snap of their fingers. They didn't have to take long for them to come up with a plan.  
  
He shook his head and took another drink. He didn't know what to tell her anymore, since she seemed to be so proud of herself. Pride and honor were some things that Sakura cherished deeply. He looked back up at her and lowered his voice. "Just be careful what you're doing. I don't want to lose you."  
  
"Back at you, Xiao Lang, right back at you." She said while flashing one of her confident smiles that he knew all to well. 


End file.
